Motor and tranny decision time for my 60 parisienne

gennaro · Veteran Member

Motor and tranny decision time for my 60 parisienne

427carl · A Poncho Legend!

gennaro wrote:
Time to make a decision for which motor and transmission to go with.
Any advice appreciated .(you asked)
1. Pontiac 455 that needs rebuild
2. Pontiac 400thats ready but needs a milder cam
3. Chevy 73 350 that may need a rebuild
4. Original matching #s 283 that rusted all to heck.... that I'm not even sure is salvageable.
5. 89 running 305 that im not even considering at this point.
As for transmissions I have the
1. original powerglide
2. 700r4 thats attached to that 305
What I'm thinking
1.400 attached to a 2004r multifit tranny .
At this point i have the bare frame ,so any mods should be fairly easy.
I was hoping that i could shift the motor forward about an 1.5 inches to avoid drive shaft cutting ,
Is this even possible? anyone done this?
And has anyone ever installed a Pontiac 400 in a Canadian pontiac?

(427carls 2 cents) I think its "against the law" to put American engine in Canadian car

Sell the 400 and the 455 and the 350 and the 305 and or trade it for a crate 350 and dress it up as a 327-300 in the car

409 guys can "show" you how to solve driveshaft problem

-- Edited by 427carl on Tuesday 18th of February 2014 07:14:15 PM

bjburnout · Uber Guru

427 Carl said:....Sell the 400 and the 455 and the 350 and the 305 and or trade it for a crate 350 and dress it up as a 327-300 in the car

I say......348......348.......348.......three deuces..........did I mention 348..........

norontcan · Canadian Poncho Superstar!

If its moving the motor mounts forward vs shortening the drive shaft, then go with shortening the shaft. Much cheaper, quicker, surer.

dualquadpete · Canadian Poncho Superstar!

It's your car, do whatever you want. But if your going to move engine [not motor] forward, then you'll have to mount the rad cradle & rad to chassis, for fit & clearance problems!!!

John Clawsie · Addicted!

Put in the 400 AS IS. To hell with milder! Use the auto with O.D. as well, IF the 700 is good, use it too. Put the motor in WITH trans, and bolt in the front and fab what is needed for the trans.

As for the Drive shaft, there are plenty of places that will shorten and re-balance, just check your area

deleted · Guru

.....getting that small section of driveshaft cut to size is much easier than moving the motor and then fitting exhausts, linkages, fan shroud issues, etc. The o/d tranny is a plus for economy, but I find the cast powerglide in my 58 works just fine and still gives me 17mpg behind the 348 tripower so nothing wrong with that. As far as engine goes, that 400 would be cool , but a small block chevy would be the easiest to work with and cheapest to keep maintained.

rabbit64cs · Canadian Poncho Superstar!

Sbc it, and a 200r is the same length as a pg....so no mods necessary.

the Pontiac would cool in there, but fuel pump and starter are opposite sides. Many mods besides mounts.

455 fetch a good dollar , just as do 400's...they haven't been made since 1978!

66 Beau · Poncho Master!

I like the 200 4r's but they're limited to about 300 ft lb (+/-) without some beefing up - unless you happen to have one from a Grand National or a Turbo Regal. The 300 may stand up for years behind a reasonable small block (I doubt it'd take the 400 poncho for long).
If you like to 'drive' it, I'd go for the 700 with shortened drive shaft. If you're concerned about returning it to stock, get yourself a backup driveshaft.
Can't beat a SBC for parts prices or availability. You could likely get all the parts for what the 400 Pontiac would sell for.

gennaro · Veteran Member

Thx for the replies , some good points made that i didn't think about as far as moving the engine (not motor) forward , that's out . Starter and fuel pump issues with the 400 is a bummer as well . looks like im gonna stay with chevy engine , i really just want a street-able cruiser with this car. When i get the urge for an adrenalin rush i can jump into my 68 rag top goat , 474 4sp (Oh ya ) .
Ill be heading up to spring Carlisle , never know, maybe ill run into a 348 or 409 that I take home with me . Not sure which tranny yet , but 4sp OD for sure. From what i read the 700 is 3.5 inches longer and the 200 1.5 in longer .

66 Beau · Poncho Master!

Not sure which tranny was in the car, but the 200 should be the same length as a powerglide, or at least it's close enough that the drive shaft would not need cutting (pg, TH350 and 200 4R are all essentially the same). I believe the tranny support has to be moved back however.

HonestDave · Addicted!

I had the opposite nightmare about a year and a half ago. I picked up a 68 Bonneville convert that someone had tried to small block Chev. Big hole cut in the frame for the fuel pump clearance and some other weird tragedies. I was going to use it as a replacement for my 68 2+2 ragtop which I crashed 30 years ago, but all the changes just put me off. Sold it as a parts car, finally. Also, too hard to find Bonneville parts up here in God's country :) All the chrome was missing....sorry, I digress....
My vote is keep it simple. 348 sounds like fun. 350 and the cast iron maidon would be a simple, yet powerful pair, wouldn't it?

65wagon · Poncho Master!

from past expeireice, a projects stays that way unless it runs every decade or so , i vote small block for cost and parts, i like th350s for cost but a 200r will work too , you can always change it when you get time, but at least you can have fun in the mean time

427carl · A Poncho Legend!

65wagon wrote:
from past experience, a projects stays that way unless it runs every decade or so ,
I vote small block for cost and parts, I like TH350s for cost but a 200r will work too ,
you can always change it when you get time,
but at least you can have fun in the mean time

Yes slip in a sbc and get going 349 409 are never cheap

57poncho · Uber Guru

I have 348 with tri power for 2900 motor has been rebuilt and broke in a run stand carbs are rebuild and all new linkages and fuel rails.

HonestDave · Addicted!

57poncho wrote:
I have 348 with tri power for 2900 motor has been rebuilt and broke in a run stand carbs are rebuild and all new linkages and fuel rails.

If you lived in the Vancouver area that would probably be gone by the end of the weekend. 409 Bob out in Surrey buys the big blocks and converts all his cars to big block 4 speed, then sells them and starts again. He's forever out buying clutch pedals, engines, transmissions and columns etc. I think he even bought one out of an old firetruck a while back.

57poncho · Uber Guru

HonestDave wrote:
57poncho wrote:
I have 348 with tri power for 2900 motor has been rebuilt and broke in a run stand carbs are rebuild and all new linkages and fuel rails.
If you lived in the Vancouver area that would probably be gone by the end of the weekend. 409 Bob out in Surrey buys the big blocks and converts all his cars to big block 4 speed, then sells them and starts again. He's forever out buying clutch pedals, engines, transmissions and columns etc. I think he even bought one out of an old firetruck a while back.

I'm sure if I tried it would sell but I have never advertised any where. I am still toying with putting it in my 57 but if I sold it it would not be the end of the world.

427carl · A Poncho Legend!

57poncho wrote:
I have 348 with tri power for 2900 motor has been rebuilt and broke in a run stand carbs are rebuild and all new linkages and fuel rails.

Thats a steal I paid that for a 350/330 sbc crate motor

Bassculture · Addicted!

I went with the 350 crate ( Edelbrock Performa kit to upgrade cam, lifters) and a 400 turbo.

HonestDave · Addicted!

What options are available for Gennaro's 60 Pontiac? Did we ever hear what his came with from the factory? Is there any financial gain by keeping it stock, or only if it was a factory big block?
If it came originally with a six, for instance, other than lack of front sway bar, would the frame need re-enforcing?

65wagon · Poncho Master!

i dont think any small block would damage the frame, the weeklink is the rearend in the pre65 models, unless its a real stinky small block, the nice thing about a small block is its simple no mods nessesary to have fun

norontcan · Canadian Poncho Superstar!

There's an early 60s 348 with multiple carbs on kijiji in Ontario.

John Clawsie · Addicted!

Yes that's mine. It's also listed here. For the price I'm asking is complete with clutch, bell housing, trans carb coil. Basically from the tail stock to water pump, air cleaner to pan.